2015 Big 12 football odds

Iowa State coach Paul Rhoads and Texas Tech coach Kliff Kingsbury are listed among the top 15 coaches on Yardbarker.com’s hottest seats heading into the 2015 season.

Kingsbury had the Red Raiders in the top 10 midway through the 2013 season before a brutal finish. And Rhoads has had unmatched success against Iowa over the years, bringing back the “Cy-Hawk Trophy” for football as recently as last September.

Still, coaching is a “what have you done for me recently business.” And as such, the web site Yardbarker.com didn’t hesitate considering that past success and it lumped Kingsbury and Rhoads among the 15 coaches who are under the most pressure to win for the 2015 season.

Here’s a look at what Yardbarker had to say about both of them among their 15 college coaches who are on the “hot seat” headed into the upcoming season.

15. Kliff Kingsbury, Texas Tech:

“Texas Tech head coach Kliff Kingsbury is the most unlikely person on our list to actually have his job in immediate danger, but it’s not like he has the program trending in the right direction. Back in 2013, Kingsbury’s head coaching career kicked off with a bang, as the Red Raiders opened the season 7-0. But since, the program is just 5-13 under his leadership.

Kingsbury has had no problem turning TTU into an offensive powerhouse – which is no surprise given the fact that he played quarterback for the program just over a decade ago. But in 2014, the Red Raiders had one of the worst defenses in college football, giving up over 41 points per game – good for 126th in the country.

Texas Tech was simply unable to stop anyone this past season – heck, the Red Raiders gave up 82 points to TCU in October. Kingsbury is a fan favorite in Lubbock, but if they finish with a losing record again in 2015, expect that to change.”

5. Paul Rhoads, Iowa State:

“Iowa State is a challenging job. Rival Iowa is the state’s flagship program, the Big 12 is often a very difficult conference to navigate, and the Cyclones don’t exactly have a Florida or Texas number of top-level recruits in their backyard to choose from. Paul Rhoads got off to about as solid of a start as one can expect in his first few years in Ames, Rhoads went 7-6, 5-7, 6-7, and 6-7 from 2009 to 2012, earning three bowl berths. Since then, the wheels have fallen off for his program.

The Cyclones are 5-19 over the last two seasons, with an 0-9 Big 12 mark in 2014. While ISU managed to knock off Iowa, and played a few tight games against top teams like Kansas State, it lost to FCS power North Dakota State by 20. In losses, Iowa State was an average of 19.8 points worse than its opponents. Iowa State’s 2015 recruiting class is currently ranked 66th by 247 Sports, which could be worse, but it doesn’t exactly inspire confidence for the future.

Rhoads has received a lot of support from athletic director Jamie Pollard, but eventually he needs to start putting together more winning seasons. If that doesn’t occur in 2015, that may be it for his tenure, which would end with just one winning record.”

Obviously, both coaches need some success. But both appear to have strong support from their athletic directors at this time, which should give them a boost moving forward.

Analysis: After struggling with one of the worst defenses in the country last season, Kliff Kingsbury went after impact players that he hopes can immediately contribute to upgrade the unit. It looks like he accomplished his task.

Top prospect: Breidon Fehoko, Honolulu Farrington. The Tech defense is searching for playmakers and the massive 290-pound tackle appears ready to lead from his first day on campus. He was the most vocal Tech recruit throughout the process and already been fiercely demanding of the other prospects. In other words, exactly the kind of leader the Red Raiders need.

Best of the rest: Connor Dyer, Mesquite Horn. After choosing Tech from an illustrious group of suitors including Ohio State, Oregon, Baylor, TCU and Texas A&M, the four-star Dyer will bring size, athleticism and a nasty disposition in the trenches as a potential cornerstone offensive lineman.

Late addition: Four-star WR JF Thomas of Dallas Oak Cliff was a huge late get as the Red Raiders flipped him from TCU on Wednesday. The 6-foot-4, 185-pounder was attracted after his former high-school coach Emmett Jones was hired as Tech’s new director of player development. Thomas is the physical kind of receiver the Red Raiders have been searching for since Kingsbury took over as coach.

Sleeper: Jonathan Giles, Elkins. Tech coaches project him as a receiver after spending the last three seasons starting at quarterback in high school, where he was MVP of his district twice. He’s not going to make any top receiver lists but has the kind of athleticism that eventually could surface in college at his new position.

One that got away: Tech hoped they could convince DE Joseph Wicker of Long Beach (Calif.) Poly to commit to a defense where his pass-rushing skills would have been an ideal match. Instead, Wicker chose Arizona State over Tech and USC in a hat decision nationally televised by ESPNU.

What coach Kliff Kingsbury had to say: “After a down year, it was good to get back on the road and bring in some new talent and get some guys we think can compete for positions right away.”

Jonathan Giles, right, was all smiles on Wednesday when he and his Elkins High School teammates made their college choices official. (Melissa Phillip / Houston Chronicle)

Jonathan Giles loves playing quarterback but also loves the idea playing college football at the highest level.

And standing 6-foot instead of three or four inches taller, moving out from under center was going to be the way could attain that dream. He’ll do just that as the Elkins star signed with Texas Tech and will play wide receiver.

“It’s tough because I fell in love playing quarterback … but at the same time, I miss playing receiver,” said Giles, who grew up a receiver and has drawn comparisons to former Hightower star Bralon Addisom and other quarterbacks who moved out wide in college. “So to go back and play my natural position again is great.”

Giles was also arguably the best dressed at the Fort Bend ISD ceremony, wearing a white tuxedo with a red vest and tie.

“I had to break out the white,” he said. “No one knew except my parents.”

NFL draft prospects from Texas schools

Thursday night brings the deadline for underclassmen to apply for the NFL draft. Some of college football’s biggest names, such as Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota and Florida State counterpart Jameis Winston, the past two Heisman winners, already have declared for the draft, along with the likes of Alabama receiver Amari Cooper.

Closer to home, Houston wide receiver Deontay Greenberry, Rice defensive tackle Christian Covington and Texas defensive tackle Malcom Brown all declared early. Click on the above gallery to check out some of the top prospects from Texas colleges.